The Marauder's Order
by SJCM
Summary: Seventh years dawns on the four Marauders of Hogwarts and the wizarding world is darker than ever before. Voldemort's grasp is extending into Hogwarts and someone must decide to fight. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter team up with Lily Evans, Alice Rogers, Mary MacDonald, and Frank Longbottom and learn what it means to fight for the things (and people) they love.
1. A Final Homecoming

Thanks so much for reading! I know there's about a million Harry Potter fanfics out there, but you're HERE! The story of the Marauders and their friendships is one of my favorite storylines, so here is their story of seventh year. Please review and follow!

 _September 1, 1977_

A brisk autumn breeze blew through the streets of London and whipped a gold and maroon scarf off the neck of a tall, lanky, black haired boy as he crossed the street towards Kings Cross Station. It began to float down the crowded sidewalk until suddenly, as if the wind had changed direction, it whipped back towards the boy and was caught by a figure who had suddenly appeared, almost as if out of thin air, on his left.

"Probably going to need this, mate!" laughed Sirius Black, elbowing his best friend in the ribs. "It's been bloody cold all summer because of the damn dementors everywhere. Keep your clothes on."

"Good snag, Sirius, but do you not see the muggles everywhere? If you get us expelled before we even get to Platform 9 ¾ I swear I'll hex you so bad you won't be able to sit down all month." James nervously rumpled his already very untidy hair as he shot furtive glances around the crowded street.

"Relax, James," sighed Sirius tiredly, "just because you're Head Boy doesn't mean you can't have a bit of fun. We're of age now."

James cast a sideways look at his friend and nudged him forward through the crowd. He trailed behind Sirius as they made their way to the pillar between platforms 9 and 10. James watched Sirius' dark, wavy hair sway as he dodged muggles carrying bags and rolling suitcases. He noticed a few wary looking people wheeling their trunks on trolleys, as James and Sirius were doing, but looking very out of place. Their bright shirts didn't match their clashingly colored bell bottoms and they attracted quite a bit of attention from passerby.

"You'd think that wizarding parents would've gotten a bit better at picking out muggle clothes by now," sighed James. "They're a dead giveaway."

"I think they look rather dashing, to be honest. Nice and subtle," smirked Sirius as they continued to make their way through the crowd, trailing behind the gaudy outfits in front of them.

The throng of students and parents made their way to the pillar and cast nervous glances around, trying to time their departures at moments when muggles wouldn't notice. Everyone in the station seemed preoccupied, though, and no one seemed to notice a few people vanishing through the solid wall every few seconds. The passbery kept their eyes on the ground and glanced nervously at watches, holding the hands of their children and spouses perhaps more tightly than was strictly necessary. No one dared make eye contact or venture away from their destinations. It was simply too dangerous these days.

"Let's go," muttered James, anxious to make his way onto the platform beyond the wall. He and Sirius locked eyes, nodded, and ran towards the pillar together, pushing their heavily laden trolleys in front of them. Instinctively, James closed his eyes tightly at the moment he should've made contact with solid brick. Instead, when he opened them, he stood on a crowded platform filled with shrieks of joy, the screeching of owls cooped up in cages, and the whistles from the waiting scarlet steam engine. Teenagers bolted across the platform into the arms of their waiting friends, anxious to tell them about their long summers apart or show off their newest robes, brooms, and pets. Despite the gloom that persisted even here, James felt some weight melt off of his chest and a smile return to his face. He grinned doggedly at Sirius at he pointed at a group of people a short ways away on the platform.

"Excellent!" exclaimed Sirius as he recognized the figures. "Moony beat us here! Wormtail's with him too. Hope he reserved a compartment already. I don't want to be disturbed on the way to the castle." Sirius strode off towards his friends, but James felt a tug on the back of his denim jacket.

"Do you think you're going to get away without a goodbye hug?" whispered Euphemia Potter. Once a powerful witch, age had now wizened her and she stood more than half a foot below her son. "You maybe be of age, James Potter, but you do not get to leave for Hogwarts without hugging your old mum. Get Sirius back here too. We've practically adopted that boy as our own and he owes me a goodbye as well." She reached up to her son's head and attempted to tame the unruly locks as James batted her hands away.

"Sorry, mum. I'd never leave without saying bye. Here comes Padfoot now."

James leaned down and embraced his mother in a tight hug. He felt a warm tear soak into his shirt and he pulled away and peered into his mother's aged face.

"Don't cry, mum. We're going to be fine. We know how to fend for ourselves." James gave his mother's hand a reassuring squeeze, but she looked even more anxious.

"That's precisely my worry, love. You and Sirius are far too talented and brave for your own good. You fight for justice and protect those who need it. I don't worry about your abilities,

James…"

"She worries about the state in which you will return home, son." James' father, Fleamont, placed an arm around James' shoulder and locked eyes with his only son. "We know you intend to join the fight against You-Know-Who after you leave Hogwarts, James. Knowing you two, you'll figure out a way to weasel your way into the resistance even before you graduate. I can't forbid you from doing it, because I know that would be a lost battle before it even began. I just beg of you to please stay safe. Don't take unnecessary risks. Watch Sirius' back like he watches yours. Fight smart, boy. The thought of losing you is far too much for our old hearts to handle." Mr. Potter continued to stare into his son's eyes, as if expecting confirmation that his son would stay safe for his own sake. A hand on James' shoulder broke the gaze between father and son.

"You know us, pop," smiled Sirius. He had appeared at James' shoulder during the conversation and was now hugging Mrs. Potter goodbye. "We are smart. Perhaps not in the traditional sense, but smart nonetheless. James can protect himself, and I'll protect him too. We look out for each other. We'll come home to you. I promise."

Tears glittered in Mr. Potter's eyes as he clapped Sirius on the back and hugged both of the boys goodbye.

"Don't do anything too foolish this year, boys…" muttered Euphemia as the boys gathered their things. "Notice I say 'too foolish' because I know that a few detentions are inevitable when you two are around each other and Remus and Peter. Try to keep it under 10."

"No promises, mum!" Sirius winked as he picked up his trunk and made his way towards the Hogwarts Express.

"We'll be ok, mum. I'll see you at Christmas." James kissed his mother's cheek as he prepared to go.

"I know you will, James. Bring Sirius with you for Christmas and whoever else needs somewhere safe to go. Perhaps you'll even bring the girl you're so fond of…. If she ever comes round to going on a date with you...:"

"Bye, mum," James interrupted, his cheeks growing ever more red. "Love you both."

The Potters smiled as they watched their only son board the train that would take him away one last time. Fleamont grasped Euphemia's hand and brushed a tear from her cheek.

"He makes me proud. We've raised a brave boy, my dear."

"Indeed, we have. Perhaps too brave for his own good, given the circumstances. We can only hope we get him back in one piece." And with her final remark, Euphemia turned to walk through the pillar to the muggle world, committing to memory the image of her son boarding the Hogwarts Express to his last year at school. It was how she wanted to think of James, happy with his mates at Hogwarts… the alternative was too dark to imagine. The Dark Lord was powerful and growing in support everyday, and she knew her son would do everything in his power to resist his ruthless reign. Fear gripped her as she crossed the streets of muggle London and felt the damp gloom settle over her once again.

* * *

James slid the compartment door shut as the train began to move away from Platform 9 ¾. He glanced up and down the corridor before turning back to his best mates and taking his seat beside the window opposite Sirius. He leaned back, sighed, and took his round glasses off of his face. After carefully polishing them on his shirt, he closed his eyes and he set his glasses on his lap as ran a hand through his hair to make it stick up spectacularly.

"You look like you wound up on the wrong end of one of Wormtail's failed charms, mate," smirked Sirius, rolling his eyes at James' carefully messed up hair. James opened one eye, pulled his wand from his pocket, and sent a carefully aimed jelly-legs curse flying through the compartment. Sirius waved his wand lazily, deflecting the spell, and the other two laughed.

"It's good to know some things won't change this year," muttered Lupin, "even when nearly everything else will."

A silence fell over the compartment and each boy looked at the three surrounding him, as if taking in the details of their faces before the year began. James, the tallest of the four, had a long face accentuated by jet black hair that stuck up in the back at all times. His round glasses framed light brown eyes that usually glittered in a way that suggested they held some sort of wonderful secret behind them. Sirius, seated opposite James, impatiently brushed a long lock of dark, curly hair back from his face. His dark features were lightened by hazel eyes that flitted around the compartment. His face was covered in a fine layer of stubble that he was determined to grow into a respectable beard. He sat with a confident manner that would have seemed haughty to all but those who knew him best. Lupin, seated next to Sirius, was as light as Sirius was dark. His strawberry blonde hair fell in wisps across his forehead and his pale skin was marred by deep scars that looked as if they'd been left by long claws. His forehead was creased in worry and made him look much older than he really was. Cowered in the corner nearest the door was the smallest and mousiest of the four boys. Peter Pettigrew wrung his hands together repeatedly as his small, watery eyes flitted around each of his friends, waiting for someone to speak. When James finally opened his mouth, Peter looked reverently at him and clung to each word.

"So. We may as well get to it. Who's dead? Who's not coming back to the castle this year?"

Remus looked a bit shocked at the harsh tone James spoke with. Peter yelped.

"Come off it, Wormtail," growled Sirius, "you've seen the news. You-Know-Who and his bloody Death Eaters are firing curses off left and right and don't care who they hit. Everyone who isn't a pure-blood is at risk and they consider blood-traitors to be as treacherous as muggle borns. So we need to know who is here. We need to know who to protect."

"Sirius…" began Lupin, "you know that Dumbledore and the rest of the Order won't let us join yet. We have to finish seventh year. He's told us time and time again."

"Just because we aren't officially in doesn't mean we can't do our part. Some of our best friends are Muggle-borns and half-bloods. You know what Mulciber tried to do to Mary MacDonald back in fifth year. Even you, Remus! You're a half-blood! Who's to say You-Know-Who wouldn't pick you off next?"

Lupin's laugh sounded eerily like a bark. "I'm afraid he'd want to do other things with me, Sirius," he explained. "Werewolves are in high demand among the Death Eaters, I'm told. I'm a weapon in his eyes."

"Even so…" began James, wearily putting his glasses back on and resting his elbows on his knees, looking up at Lupin. "This is our last year at Hogwarts. We need to learn everything we can in Defense lessons, protect the people we have the power to, and get ready to fight. The war is here, Remus. I intend to fight Voldemort or die trying."

Wormtail yelped once again at the mention of Lord Voldemort's name. All three boys shot him a look and he hastily shoved his knuckles into his mouth to keep silent.

"You're right, Prongs, as always," conceded Remus slightly sarcastically, causing a small smirk to creep onto James' concerned face. "I'm in. Let's fight the bastards." James clapped him on the shoulder and turned back to face all three.

"First things first. Who has seen Lily Evans?"

* * *

The train sped through the heather covered countryside as the afternoon melted away. Fog blanketed the hills and clung to the train's windows. Condensation ran down the inside of the window and James trailed his finger through it absentmindedly, drawing the letters L and J. Sirius slapped his knee, jerking him out of the trance he was it, and he quickly wiped the window clear of incriminating evidence and rejoined the conversation. The four Marauders sat huddled in their compartment, pausing their conversation only long enough to buy pumpkin pasties and chocolate frogs from the witch who pushed the food trolley. They compiled all of the information they had collectively gathered over the summer about the status of the Hogwarts students and families who were in danger.

"Lily is fine," Remus said, jotting down notes on a piece of parchment, "she sent an owl to me over the summer to let me know that she was safe and that Dumbledore had placed a Fidelius charm on her aunt and uncle's house where she's been staying. She is the secret keeper, so no Death Eater will be able to find them."

"Nor can any creepy bloke who wants to take their niece on a date…" quipped Sirius, winking at James.

"Bugger off, Padfoot. Okay, so Lily is accounted for. Mary?" James glanced around at his friends, hoping someone could speak to the status of one of Lily Evans' best friends, Mary MacDonald.

"I saw her on the platform," said Peter, "she looked a bit off. Downtrodden…"

"Well I'd expect that," muttered Sirius darkly, "seeing as her parents were attacked trying to take Mary to Diagon Alley to get her school robes."

The other boys inhaled sharply and waited for Sirius to continue.

"They made it out okay, from what I've heard. Shaken up and with a few injuries, but the St. Mungo's healers put them right and erased the memories of it. Mary will always remember, though. She'll remember that she's the one who caused it just because she was born with magic."

James shook his head angrily. Remus covered his face with his hands. Peter wiped a tear from his pudgy cheek.

"Right. So we need to make sure Mary and Lily are safe this year, along with other muggle born Gryffindors. They're well known muggle borns who possess a noticeable aptitude for magic, which will make the fledgling Death Eaters even angrier. Speaking of those prats, which of the bloody Slytherins do we need to be on the lookout for?" James looked pointedly at Sirius.

"Blimey, mate, I've been living with you all summer! I'm not a bloody Slytherin!" barked Sirius at the expression on James' face. "Right. Okay, I do know a few things. I heard Regulus talking to my parents when I snuck back in this summer to nick my stuff. We've always known Snape was a slimy, creepy git, so he's one of them now. Mulciber, obviously. He's made that quite clear. Avery, Knott, Rosier, and my brother are also likely candidates. They all boast about their pureblood status and think what Voldemort is doing is for 'the greater good'. They're the ones we need to be on the watch for. The last thing we need is them letting more Death Eaters into Hogwarts or leaking information about Dumbledore to their master."

Remus nodded thoughtfully. James tapped his wand against his knee absentmindedly, causing red sparks to shower out of the end and straight into Peter's lap. With a yelp of realization, he put the small fire in Wormtail's crotch out and laughed, coming to his senses.

"Aguamenti! Sorry, mate, accident. No, really, I swear," laughed James, amused by the look of betrayal on Wormtail's face as he fanned the smoke away from himself. "Anyways, we probably ought to change into our robes soon. I expect we'll be arriving in Hogsmeade soon."

The other three nodded in agreement and stood up to sort through their trunks to find robes, ties, and their cloaks. Peter discarded his wet, singed jeans to the sniggers of the other three. They pulled their robes on over their heads in silence and all sat back down, cloaks in hand, to prepare to enter the castle.

"This is really it, boys," grinned Sirius, "our last year. We may be stepping up to join the resistance and fight the Hogwarts Death Eaters this year, but we still have some time for mischief. I've got a few ideas up my sleeve, and with our newly perfected map, we will execute them flawlessly. Moony, you've got the map, right?"

Remus nodded, patting his breast pocket under his robes. The Marauder's Map was safely stowed upon the most responsible of the four, putting the other three at ease. They had spent countless hours charming that old piece of parchment into the bit of genius it was now, and they could not afford for it to fall into the wrong hands.

"Speaking of the map, Padfoot…" began Remus, "I think this will be our greatest weapon in trying to keep order and protect our friends. We can take shifts with it, especially at night, to watch out for the people who are being targeted by the Death Eaters. It would give me some more peace of mind. Lily is one of my best friends, and I would blame myself if something

happened to her."

"Brilliant idea, Moony!" yelled James, his face lighting up. "I'll take the first shift tonight after the feast."

"Of course you will, mate, but you do know the map will only show you where Lily is, right?" Padfoot smirked as he looked at James. "You'll be able to tell she's IN her dorm room, but you can't actually see her undressing…"

Remus and Peter howled with laughter as James threw a chocolate frog at him. They felt the train coming to a stop and all stood up, fastening their cloaks and locking their trunks.

"Here we go, mates. We're home." The boys followed James out into the corridor and into their seventh year.


	2. A Calling Worth Fighting For

Our first James/Lily moment... please review (constructive criticism appreciated)

Chapter 2

The journey from the station to the castle was dark, cold, and unremarkable. The boys sat in relative silence, swaying back and forth as the carriages drove in and out of the ruts left in the soft road by the carriages ahead of them. They peered out the windows as the castle swam into view, gleaming with lights on in every tower and turret. James' breath seemed to catch in his throat; this was his last year of calling that magnificent place home. Memories rushed through his mind… meeting Sirius, Remus, and Peter, making the Quidditch team, trips into Hogsmeade, late nights in the library attempting to study and sneaking chocolate frogs out of Sirius' bag, meeting Lily... He shook his head to clear the emotion away and clapped Sirius on the shoulder as they got out. The boys joined in a long throng of students queuing up to enter the Great Hall for the Welcome Feast. They shuffled forward and made their way towards the Gryffindor table, sliding into a bench next to the seventh year Gryffindor girls. James saw a long sheet of dark auburn hair next to him and his heart seemed to jump into his throat. He coughed. The red hair flew over its owners shoulder and Lily Evans turned to face James.

"Yes, Potter?" she snapped, obviously irritated by the interruption to her conversation with Mary MacDonald and Alice Rogers.

"Sorry, Lil. Bit of pumpkin juice went down the wrong pipe." He grinned and shrugged his shoulders as she rolled her eyes and returned to her conversation. He turned his focus back to his friends, but his mind continued to wander to Lily. To say they had a complicated past would be an understatement of gigantic proportions. For the first five years at Hogwarts, Lily had despised James. James and Sirius had made it their personal mission to antagonize Severus Snape, Lily's childhood best friend. Snape was a small, greasy haired Slytherin who seemed to bring the worst out in those around him. Other than Lily. Lily was steadfast and loyal to Snape and by proxy, hated James and Sirius with a passion that almost made the boys want to pick on her and Severus even more. Somewhere between fourth and fifth year, James had found himself thinking of Lily in ways that didn't revolve around tormenting Severus Snape. There was something about her fiery ways that both scared and intrigued James. He began to badger Lily into going out with him, to which she vehemently protested time and time again. They kept up this charade until sixth year, when the presence of the war became undeniable at Hogwarts. That year was when everything changed.

By the beginning of sixth year, several burgeoning Death Eaters began to make themselves known. They campaigned for a reign of terror, hexing unsuspecting students in the corridors and targeting muggle-borns in vicious attacks. Lily Evans was one of the brightest students at Hogwarts and was an obvious target to the boys who operated upon Voldemort's orders. It was a cold day in early November when she had been walking to the astronomy tower (early, as always) that they attacked her.

As Lily made her way up the long spiral staircase, her wand was magically forced out of her hand and into the waiting grasp of Evan Rosier. He snarled at her and yelled up the stairs to the rapidly approaching figures of two more boys.

"Avery! Mulciber! Poor Evans seems to have lost her wand. Perhaps we should help her?"

The other two laughed nastily and each jumped onto the stair on opposite sides of Lily. They grasped her upper arms tightly and Avery kicked Lily hard on the backside of her knees. She cried out in pain and sank to her knees.

"Perfect. Just where I like you." Avery grabbed Lily's long auburn ponytail and wrenched her head backwards. It hit the stair behind her and she felt hot blood seep into her hair and down her neck. Lily closed her eyes and willed the hot tears not to fall. She was not about to let anyone see weakness.

"Filthy Mudblood…" muttered Mulciber, licking his lips, "it's time you learn your place in this world." He pulled his wand out of his robes and pressed it hard to Lily's cheek. A stubborn tear escaped the corner of her eye and trickled down her cheek onto his wand. Mulciber cackled and dug his wand into her mouth even harder. "That's right, muggle. It's supposed to hurt. It's time for you to join your filthy muggle parents. Cruc-"

BANG.

Mulciber's wand was suddenly not touching her cheek, although a burning sensation told her that it had burned a mark into her face. She heard a sickening crack and opened her tightly balled eyes to find Mulciber splayed out on the stairs below her, one of his arms bent at a sickening angle. Rosier and Avery were a few stairs below, bound together by thick ropes and laying at the feet of a fuming James Potter.

"LILY!" James took the stairs three at a time until he reached the stair where Lily sat, huddled and shaking. He sank to the ground and wrapped Lily in his arms.

She wasn't sure how long she stayed there. Her whole body shook, from anger or fear she did not know, and the tight grip of James' arms was all that kept her from losing all control. Tears streamed down her face onto his robes and she felt his back shake. Eventually, she gained control and shook the hair out of her eyes. She reached up and wiped her bloodshoteyes with the arms of her robes and eased her way out of James' grasp. He looked up, his glasses askew and his hair even more mussed up than normal.

"Lily…" he began, tears glittering behind his glasses "Lil… I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

Lily looked up sharply. This was very unlike James Potter… but then again, so was this whole exchange. She hated James. She always had. Never in her life would she let him embrace her… until today. She had fully expected James to erupt in a shower of righteous anger and spew hate about the three Slytherins… but he didn't. He asked if she was okay. Lily's stomach jumped into her throat and she was sure it didn't have anything to do with the fear she felt.

"I- I'm okay." Lily choked the words out, trying not to cry. "I'm okay, James, I swear. They attacked me on my way up… they didn't do anything, though. You stopped Mulciber right before he was going to cast the Cruciatus curse."

She felt James' body tense up and his breath came in ragged gulps.

"Those bastards… I swear…" He choked back anger and attempted to regain his composure. "They did do something to you, Lily." He tenderly touched the scorch mark on her face and when he pulled his hand away, blood stained his fingertips. "Lily! You're bleeding! Get up. We are going to the hospital wing." He grasped her hands and pulled her to her feet. James gathered the scattered contents of Lily's bag, shoved them into his own, and turned to her. "Here. Let me carry you."

"James Potter. I do not need saving," protested Lily angrily. She defiantly took a step to the stair below her and her legs crumpled. Her vision blurred and the staircase swam before her. Suddenly, James' arms were there, holding her up.

"Right. Okay. You're fine. But let me carry you down. For my own peace of mind." He looked pleadingly at her, and she obliged.

"Fine."

James scooped Lily off her feet, one arm around her shoulders and one underneath her bent knees. He began to run down the stairs, easily supporting her weight. She leaned back, letting her head fall into James' shoulder. He smelled nice… like toothpaste and aftershave… she shook her head. She could not fall for James Potter. She would not let herself.

They reached the bottom of the stairs and James rounded the corner, tearing up the crowded corridor to the hospital wing. Hordes of people parted at his oncoming figure and pressed against the walls, straining to see whose seemingly lifeless body James Potter was carrying.

"Evans! Lily Evans! What in the world?"

Excited whispers filled the corridor. Lily shut her eyes, willing herself to look dead. The rumors would be unbearable tomorrow.

James finally reached the hospital wing and burst through the doors to find a very surprised Poppy Pomfrey tending to another student.

"Madame Pomfrey! Please, it's Lily. She's been attacked." James panted heavily, gently laying Lily on the nearest bed. "Her face, see, it's been burned… and her head! It's bleeding!" He attempted to show Madame Pomfrey, but Lily batted his hands away.

"James! I'm okay. Just go. Please." Her eyes glittered with tears again, and James quickly turned away. He couldn't bear to see her cry… couldn't bear to witness the damage the Death Eaters had done to her.

"Okay. I'll come back later. And Lily…" he faltered, averting his eyes, "I'm glad you okay." He turned, robes billowing behind him, and left the hospital wing.

James had returned to the hospital wing later that evening to return Lily's belongings that he had hastily shoved into his own bag. He found her blissfully unconscious, at peace due to Madame Pomfrey's sleeping draught. He had gently sat on the edge of her bed and held her lifeless hand in his own.

"Damnit, Lily Evans," he whispered, "if something would've happened to you…" he blinked tears away. "I love you. I think I always have. I will always keep you safe." He leaned down and kissed her warm cheek as she continued to doze. He attempted to memorize everything about her… the delicate curve of her jawbone, the sprinkling of freckles across her pale cheeks, the way her hair caught the light and seemed to turn into wisps of glittering gold… his heart felt as if it would burst out of his chest if he looked at her any longer. He set her hand down on the sheets and stood up to leave.

James had never told anyone about that moment - the moment he had realized that beyond a shadow of doubt, as if it were written in stone… he was going to marry Lily Evans.

* * *

The Welcome Feast commenced with the Sorting ceremony, during which the Gryffindors cheered loudly for their new first years and held their tongues in stony silence when a new Slytherin was sorted. After the long line of nervous eleven year-olds had been sorted into their respective houses, an eye-boggling assortment of foods magically appeared on the platters before them. Everyone dug in, too busy stuffing their mouths with roast beef, shepherd's pie, roast potatoes, treacle tart, and sweets to talk to one another. As the plates slowly started to empty and bellies began to feel uncomfortably full, the hum of conversation began to grow louder. On one side of James, Sirius was picking on Peter about finally asking Mary on a date. On his other, Lily sat in thoughtful silence, her chin resting on her hand as she gazed, unblinking, at the staff table at the front of the Great Hall. James gently laid a hand on her shoulder. She started, her head slipping out of her hands and her eyes zeroing in on James. She peered at him quizzically.

"You okay? Awfully quiet tonight… for a redhead, that is," James teased, tugging a long lock of auburn hair.

"Sod off, Potter," she snapped, but a smile curled the edges of her lips upwards. Her almond shaped, bright green eyes regained their normal glitter as she turned to James. "I'm fine," she continued, "just can't believe this is it. This is our last year. The last time we're going to call this castle home…" she trailed off, looking at the staff table once again. James sensed that she wanted to say that this was the last year that they'd be safe under the watchful eye of Albus Dumbledore. He kept this knowledge to himself and let Lily continue.

"We've changed so much over the last six years, James. I just can't picture my life after Hogwarts. I can't imagine not seeing everyone every day. Not growing up together anyone. It scares me." She turned back to him, her eyes wide and fearful. James smiled encouragingly. She was so beautiful even when she was afraid.

"It scares me too. It scares all of us. Even Sirius, though don't tell him I told you that. You know he likes to appear macho to the ladies." Lily chortled, nodding knowingly. "But I suppose we can either dread leaving at the end of the year or we can decide to make this year worth something. We can do all we are able this year. We can leave our own mark on Hogwarts, y'know?" James trailed off, eagerly awaiting Lily's reply.

"You're right, I suppose," she conceded, punching his upper arm, "but don't let it get to your head. And we can't leave any physical marks on the school, James. We are Head Boy and Girl and I don't think McGonagall would like to explain that to Dumbledore." She shuddered at the thought and unconsciously straightened her shiny Head Girl badge pinned to her robes. James began to laugh, but was soon cut off as Professor Dumbledore stood up and all attention turned to him.

James barely heard Dumbledore start to speak. He was entirely occupied by thinking of Lily. She had agreed with him, perhaps for the first time in her life, he thought, and James couldn't help but think of the implications of their conversation. Ever since the moment they had shared in the astronomy tower, Lily had been far less hostile to James. Her anger had been replaced by patience, her snide comments had been exchanged for genuine concern, and the time she used to spend with Severus was now spent with Mary, Alice, and the four Marauders, and Alice's boyfriend, fellow Gryffindor seventh year Frank Longbottom. Progress had been made, but James knew that he only had a year to win her over.

"I recognize the horrors and fear some of you were subjected to this summer," said Dumbledore, his voice sharp and full of anger, "and I want to impress upon you the seriousness of the situation around us. Lord Voldemort is powerful." Gasps rent the crowd. James snapped away from his daydreams of Lily and was now fully tuned in to the headmaster's speech. "He and his followers have made it their mission to 'purify' the wizarding world. They see no inherent value in human life. They have no regard to who a witch or wizard is and what they bring to the world, only to the blood flowing through their veins. There will be no tolerance for this ignorance at Hogwarts. Violence is not an option in these halls. You are here under my protection to learn how to boldly walk forward into an uncertain future with the power to change our world. We, as staff, entrust our futures to you. Do not let us down."

The Great Hall fell ominously silent. Dumbledore's speeches were usually witty, welcoming, and upbeat; It suddenly felt as if a dark presence had descended on the school. Students locked eyes and shook their heads as words failed to come.

"I do not wish to scare you," Dumbledore continued, sounding considerably more lighthearted, "I only wish to impress upon you the confidence we have in each and every one of your abilities as a witch or wizard. And with that, I dismiss you all and invite you to follow your heads of houses to your dormitories. Sleep well." He waved his hand and the large oak doors to the hall were cast open wide.

James sat frozen on the Gryffindor bench, Dumbledore's words ringing through his mind. As he processed the headmaster's remarks, a small hand pulled at the sleeve of his robes.

"James! Let's go! We have to supervise the prefects taking first years to the common rooms!" Lily dragged James away from the table by the hood of his robes. James stumbled after her, overwhelmed by the intoxicating scent of her vanilla perfume. He shook his head, pulled his hood away from her, and rubbed his neck where his robes had chafed him.

"Geez, Lil, no need to strangle me before term even starts…" She rolled her eyes and wove her way through the crowd to the staircase. "First years! First years!" Her voice rang through the hall, causing the heads of the smallest students in the crowd to turn to her. Nervous eyes locked onto her and James. "Please find your prefects! PREFECTS! Raise your hands, please. First years, follow your prefects to your dormitories, please!" Heads bobbed as students scrambled to find their prefects. Older students wove through the crowd as they began to follow the familiar paths back to their own four poster beds.

"We need to stay until they all clear out, in case anyone gets left behind. Yes, James, I am serious. You know what's required of us." James shot Lily a nasty look as Sirius, Remus, and Peter said goodbye and begrudgingly made their way back to Gryffindor tower without James. James leaned against the stone staircase, waiting for Lily to allow him to leave. He wasn't sure why he'd been made Head Boy, in all honesty. He hadn't even been made a prefect in fifth year. The badge had gone to Remus, the most upstanding citizen amongst the four marauders. James had figured that he and Sirius had far too many detentions on file with the caretaker, Filch, to be given the responsibility of looking after younger students. When the Head Boy badge had fallen out of his Hogwarts letter this summer, he had stared at it for a good minute until Sirius had realized what it was.

"HA! HEAD BOY! You?! C'mon, Prongs. Who'd you have to Imperius to get this? No way McGonagall would do this in her right mind. You can hardly be trusted with keeping yourself alive, much less the entirety of Britain's young witches and wizards!" Sirius, hooting with laughter, screwed up his face in his best Minerva McGonagall impression. "Mr. Potter," he trilled with a Scot's accent, "you must realize the importance of this badge. I will not have you parading around like a babbling, bumbling baboon!" James laughed and threw a textbook at Sirius as he checked his trunk for materials he already had. "I'm going to tell your mum about this, mate. She'll have a cow." Sirius ran down the stairs, holding James' badge in his outstretched hand.

James still hadn't come up with an answer as to why he had been given this responsibility. He'd be just as well off without it, he thought to himself. He was already the captain of Gryffindor's quidditch captain and needed to use his time training the best team he could find. This was their last shot to take the Quidditch Cup away from the Slytherins and wipe the filthy smirk off of Slytherin captain Theodore Knott's face. He silently hoped that being Head Boy was less work than being a prefect, because Remus often had duties that took up his evenings and weekends.

James leaned against the staircase, content to let Lily do the real work. She flitted around, helping first years find their way and scolding older students for running through the crowd and sending new students flying. After half an hour, the corridor had nearly emptied and Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore emerged from the Great Hall and approached James and Lily. James stood upright and straightened his robes out, attempting to look like a somewhat capable Head Boy.

"Mr. Potter. Ms. Evans. I assume all of our new students found their way to their common rooms with their prefects?" McGonagall looked appraisingly at James, as if daring him to tell her that they lost a few.

"Yes, ma'am," nodded James, "they're all safe and sound. The prefects have escorted them to their dormitories. Is there anything you need from us?"

"No, Mr. Potter. Your job is done for the night. But I did want to take a moment to explain to the pair of you why Professor McGonagall and I have chosen you to be Hogwarts' Head Boy and Girl." Dumbledore's clear blue eyes glittered behind his half-moon spectacles. "We are living in dangerous times. You both know that better than most." Lily tensed beside James, the memory of her attack still fresh in mind. "We need students to rise above the rest and set an example. We needed a Head Boy and Girl that would show courage, resilience, strength, and a desire to seek justice and mercy. We need you two to lead this school as they are torn between two sides. They need to know that resisting evil can be done. You two will show them. You both display tremendous courage and resolve, as well as wit and charm. There are no two students we trust more than you, Lily and James." Dumbledore concluded, his eyes boring into James'.

"We won't let you down, Professor," Lily said, voice steady and proud. "We're ready."

"We know you are, Ms. Evans," smiled McGonagall. "Now, off to bed. Classes start bright and early tomorrow and I need you both ready to receive seven outstandings on your N.E.W.T.S., as is required by each Head Girl and Boy."

James and Lily stared, open-mouthed, at McGonagall. Her stern grimace slowly turned into a sly smile.

"Contrary to popular opinion, I do possess a small sense of humor. Goodnight."

* * *

James awoke in the early pre-dawn darkness the next morning, confused as to what had roused him from his sleep. He blindly groped around the table next to his bed and eventually felt his glasses, which he promptly seized and shoved roughly onto his face. The dark room swam into view through the thick lenses and he heard the distinct crackling of logs in the fireplace of the common room. He, Sirius, Peter, Remus, and Frank lived in the dormitory closest to the common room and were often kept up by the revelry ensuing below, although it was usually Sirius and James causing the noise in the first place. James sighed, pushing himself out of bed. He knew he wouldn't fall back asleep now and it sounded as if someone else was already downstairs. He seized the opportunity to begin drafting quidditch plays in the early morning company of other Gryffindors. He threw a fluffy robe on over his flannel pajamas and padded down the stairs, parchment and ink bottle in hand. He stopped dead when he reached the bottom. Lily, with her back to James, sat near the fire, holding the hand of a sobbing Mary MacDonald. Alice sat at the floor, hand on Mary's knee, whispering soothing words. Lily's long auburn hair caught the firelight and made golden lights dance on the dark walls. James' breath caught in his throat and Lily's head whipped around.

"Oi! What're you do- oh, sorry, James. Thought it was going to be Sirius." Lily shrugged apologetically and James made his way over to the couch. He sat gingerly next to Mary.

"Mary? What's going on? Did someone hurt you?" James' forehead creased with worry as he peered into Mary's tear stained face.

"Oh n-no, J-J-James," she hiccupped, pulling her curly brown hair out of her face and securing it with a hair band. "I'm just s-so worried about my p-parents. They were attacked this summer and after the feast, Avery made a n-nasty comment about making sure they did a better job with them… n-n-next time." Fresh tears streamed down her face and James saw Lily's hand tighten around Mary's, her jaw clenched in anger. Lily's parents had been killed in a car accident shortly before her fifth year. She had been living with her aunt and uncle ever since, but James knew that Lily was feeling the anger she would've been accustomed to if her parents were alive.

"Oh, Mary. I'm so sorry. The Order won't let anything happen to your parents, I'm sure of it. And I'll make sure to bloody Avery's nose next time I see him in the corridor." James smiled, trying to lighten the mood.

"Order? W-what is that?" gulped Mary, head cocked sideways in confusion.

"Oh, bollocks, probably wasn't supposed to say that. But I'll tell you three as long as you keep it between us." James raised his eyebrows at each of the girls and awaited their response. Mary nodded slowly and Alice looked up from the ground and smiled at James.

"Of course. We won't tell." Lily's green eyes flashed with excitement. James thought he might faint.

"Okay. The only reason Voldemort hasn't taken complete power yet is because of a resistance organization. The Order of the Phoenix. Dumbledore formed it and they operate underground, fighting Death Eaters and protecting Muggle borns. My mum and dad support the Order financially, that's how I know about it. Sirius and I tried to join this summer, but Dumbledore refused. Said we have to graduate first. There are loads of professors in it, though… Dumbledore, McGonagall, Flitwick, Madame Pomfrey… they're really great. They'll watch over your parents." James concluded his explanation and waited again for the girls to speak up.

"I'm in," said Lily quickly, "I want to be a part of it too. Those damn Death Eaters have already taken too much from us."

Alice and Mary stared at Lily. They had never, in six years, heard her curse. She looked defiant, hair fanning out on her shoulders and green eyes blazing.

"Well, that's great, Lily.. but did you miss that whole thing? Dumbledore told us no… not until we graduate." James looked quizzically at her, wondering if she'd lost her mind in the last twelve hours. This was not typical Lily behavior… but it was intriguing. She was strong and brave and so beautiful that James felt that his heart was actually going to explode.

"Yes, James, I heard you." Her sharp tone indicated a return to normalcy. "But just because we can't join yet doesn't mean we can't help. We can do it on our own. We can fight the Hogwarts Death Eaters. We'll teach ourselves extra defensive magic and do everything we can this year, and as soon as we graduate, we will make them let us in. They can't say no if we could be valuable to them."

"Funny you should say that, Evans…" Sirius' voice floated down the staircase and he emerged shortly after it, looking distinctly disheveled and bleary eyed. "Because we were thinking the very same thing. But I wasn't planning on waking up so damn early for it." James laughed. "You laugh now, Prongs, but Evans' voice ringing through our room isn't all that pleasant at 5 AM." James reddened. He actually couldn't imagine anything more enjoyable. "If you promise to keep your voice down between the hours of midnight and 7 in the morning, Evans, you're in. You too, Alice and Mary."

"And Frank too? You know we're both applying to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement this year. He wants to fight too." Alice's large brown eyes looked into James' own hazel ones.

"Yes. Of course. I don't know anyone braver than Frank, especially when you're involved. I'll tell him at breakfast." James smiled at Alice and turned back to Mary and Lily.

Mary's tearful frown was exchanged for a grim look of defiance. Lily jumped up and engulfed Sirius in a hug. He looked as if she had kissed him full on the mouth.

"Get over it, Black. I can put aside my full-time job of hating you in lieu for some productive defense spells and fighting those assholes."

Sirius and James erupted in laughter and collapsed back into the couches around the fire.

The five of them stayed in the common room until the rest of Gryffindor tower began to wake and fill the remaining couches and armchairs. Lily looked down at her watch at half past seven and yelped, realizing they were going to miss breakfast if they didn't hurry. They all dispersed to their dormitories to get dressed and head into the main part of the castle. James and Sirius dressed quickly, trying to explain to Peter and Remus where they'd been all morning and that the three Gryffindor seventh year girls too wanted to join the Order. The four of them descended the stairs together walked to the Great Hall for breakfast and slid into the bench across from Lily and Mary. Frank and Alice were huddled together on Mary's other side. Alice had clearly beat James and Sirius to the punch.

"Brilliant idea, mates," Frank shook Remus' hand and looked at the four of them, "I can't think of a better way to help Alice and me prepare for Auror training and accomplish something here too. I was thinking-" he was interrupted by Professor McGonagall handing out schedules to each of them.

"Damn. Potions this morning. Hope it's not with Slytherin again…" Sirius mumbled, scanning over the rest of the parchment.

"No, Mr. Black, your potions lessons will no longer be held with the seventh year Slytherins," chided McGonagall as she helped Peter remedy his schedule to not include Care of Magical Creatures. He'd had an embarrassing incident with a niffler during sixth year and still grimaced when he looked at the wooden hutches where they were kept. "After the unfortunate incident that ended with Mr. Rosiers head being doused with Shrinking Solution last term, we decided it would be prudent to perhaps separate Gryffindor and Slytherin when dangerous potions were involved. You will be with the Hufflepuffs." She frowned over her square glasses and moved down the table, emerald robes swishing behind her.

"It was one time!" Sirius said, stabbing a kipper with his fork as the others howled with laughter. "One bloody time. His head looks fine now. Sort of wish Madame Pomfrey hadn't fixed it, though…"

After breakfast, Lily, Alice, Frank, James, Sirius, and Remus made their way down to the dungeons for their first potions lesson. Mary and Peter had only received acceptable on their potions O.W.L.S and had discontinued potions after fifth year. The six of them emerged from the dungeons an hour later, hair considerably more frizzy and nerves more frazzled than before they had attempted to brew a Singeing Solution.

"Nice, light lesson to ease us back in, huh? Some of that damn potion splashed in my eye when I added the valerian root and I actually hoped it would kill me to get me out of that lesson." Sirius rubbed at his dark eye with the sleeve of his robes. "Good thing I'm bloody terrible at potions or I'd be blind."

Lily ran a hand through her noticeably tangled hair and Alice wiped a smudge of charcoal from Frank's pale cheek. James' hair was just as unkempt as usual and Remus looked more clammy and unwell than as was normal.

"You okay, Moony? Looking a bit peakier than normal. You didn't swallow any of that potion, did you?" Sirius peered into Remus' eyes. They appeared so pale that they looked as though the green irises had simply been washed away with water and a pale hue had been left behind.

"I'm fine, Sirius," muttered Remus under his breath, "the moon is rising. Shut up about it before the others hear you." He hastily stowed his wand in his robes and sped ahead of the group, muttering something about needing to use the loo. They didn't see Remus again until lunchtime, when he sidled into the Great Hall late and surreptitiously took his place between Peter and James.

"Sorry. Went to the hospital wing to check in with Madame Pomfrey and take some Wolfsbane potion. It's not perfect yet, but she thinks this draft will help ease the pain I feel during transitions." James nodded, his mouth too full of hot stew to respond. He never knew what to say to Remus before a full moon - there was nothing he could say to ease the agony that Remus went through every single month. Words didn't change Remus' condition or his pain. The only thing that James could do was to be by his side during the transitions and the nights that he was trapped in the wolf's body. He could become Prongs and keep Remus safe from himself. He knew the moon would be full tonight and he, Sirius, and Peter had already made plans to sneak out of the castle to accompany Remus in the Shrieking Shack. James hoped it wouldn't be a terrible transition, though, because he had scheduled the first round of Quidditch tryouts for the next morning.

Afternoon came in a welcome blaze of sunshine breaking through the clouds outside and streaming through the high windows of the castle. The boys looked longingly towards the lake and the lawn where they could typically be found during any free hours. "Only one more class today, lads! Having the first day of term on a Friday is brilliant," Sirius said brightly, attempting to cheer his mates up and distract them from the first-day-of-class blues. "And it's Defense. Speaking of… who do reckon is teaching it this year? I didn't see anyone new at the staff table last night… wonder if they didn't find anyone to fill the spot?"

"Bet they didn't," James theorized, sounding cynical, "seeing as all of our past professors have either died or been forced to leave the castle. How would they advertise that in the Prophet? 'Come teach little shits defensive magic. Probably die doing it.' Not a real appealing job at this point, I'd say."

The boys all nodded and continued to the Defense classroom, which was already almost full of seventh year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws. The air seemed to buzz with anticipation. Everyone knew that this class was one of the most important they would ever take at Hogwarts. This was the magic they needed to survive after leaving the castle - the spells that would either protect them from Voldemort or would work for his cause. Whoever had been chosen to teach this class would make or break their ability to be able to defend themselves and one another. It was crucial that it was someone who recognized the danger they would be in as soon as they stepped foot away from the castle who would be teaching them. BANG. The doors to the room clanged shut as a tall figure brushed up the aisle to take his place at the front of the classroom. Several people gasped.

"Welcome to your first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson of the year," said Albus Dumbledore, his blue eyes sweeping from wall to wall to assess the mix of students that occupied the oaken desks that filled the room. "We had some difficulty filling the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor this term, understandably. Not only is this a difficult, demanding position to take on, but the current state of the wizarding world necessitates an accomplished, capable, and courageous professor to take on the futures of our young witches and wizards. With that being said, we, as professors, decided it would be wise to split the job between several trusted colleagues. Professor McGonagall will be teaching the first, third, and fifth year classes. Professor Flitwick will take over the second and fourth year lessons. I myself have offered to teach the sixth and seventh year lessons. You are the witches and wizards that are closest to leave this castle as enter, as full fledged members, the wizarding world and it is vital that you are taught the magic that will protect you and propel you forward. I hope to impress upon you the importance of this class this year. When you leave this castle, you are your first and primary source of protection. Not the enchantments surrounding the castle, not your professors, and not even your friends. You. You must learn the spells you will be taught in this room. I expect more from you than you have been asked to provide before this year. Does anyone have questions?" Dumbledore folded his hands and raised his eyebrows, waiting for a hand to shoot into the air. "None? Very well. Let us begin."

Dumbledore split the class into pairs and asked them to display their knowledge and usage of several defensive spells on one another while he swept around the rooms, a long piece of parchment magically floating behind him, scribbling notes on itself.

James, who had been paired with Ravenclaw Amelia Bones, felt quite satisfied with his display of his defensive spells. He disarmed Amelia successfully and blocked her countercurse with a strong Shield Charm. She did manage to perform a Sticking Charm on him, though, and he remained glued to one spot for a few minutes while deflecting her other charms. Dumbledore continue to amass the room, observing and noting, but not saying anything. The two hour lesson seemed to melt away as magic coursed through the hands and wands of the seventh years. Lily sent Peter flying several times with a Stunning Spell and when he finally managed to disarm her, James thought that she had allowed him to do so to make him feel a bit better. Dumbledore dismissed them after two hours had passed and told them to come prepared for their next lesson, as they would be perfecting the use of non-verbal shield charms. The class spilled out into the corridor, chatting excitedly about the prospect of learning defensive magic from one of the greatest wizards of all time.

"Maybe we don't need extra defense practice now," said Peter hesitant, "because with Dumbledore teaching us, we probably will be better than ever before."

"Having Dumbledore teaching is definitely going to give us an edge," Sirius agreed, "but extra practice can only make us that more effective. Lessons just aren't enough time to learn everything we can. I say we still try to meet once a week to practice." James and Remus nodded in agreement. They made their way to the Great Hall for dinner and spent the evening writing a Potions essay assigned to them that was to be handed in on Monday morning. As darkness began to fall, Remus left the Common Room to meet Madame Pomfrey in the hospital wing to be escorted to the Shrieking Shack. He bid the boys goodbye with a sly smile turning up the corners of his mouth; he knew they would be joining him in a few hours in their Animagus forms.

"Hope she can cure your headache, mate!" Sirius yelled over the bustle of the Common Room. "Stay the night in the hospital if you need!" James rolled his eyes. Sirius shrugged. James knew he was only trying to create a cover story for Remus, but Sirius always exaggerated everything he did. The boys waited until everyone had left for their own beds (or else snuck out for a secret rendezvous inside the castle) before they grabbed James' Invisibility Cloak, checked their pockets for their wands, and left the castle for the moonlit castle grounds.

Once they were within distance of the Whomping Willow and could be sure no one was watching, all three stopped. James stowed the cloak under a tree near the lake so they could retrieve it in a few hours. Sirius, Peter, and James all stood in a circle, eyes locked on one another.

"Ready?" Sirius asked quietly.

"Let's go." James closed his eyes and attempted to relax every muscle in his body. He pictured his animagus form and willed himself to allow the hot, burning animal instinct to take over. His breath suddenly caught in his throat as if a large hand had grabbed it. His bones felt like molten lava and his head was splitting in pain. He wasn't sure how long he could handle this.. But then, a second later, it was over. He opened his eyes. A large black dog stared at him and the grounds swam into view. There, in front of James, was the shadow of a massive stag silhouetted by the light of the rising full moon. Power coursed through his body as he turned to lead the dog and rat to the Whomping Willow. Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs had returned to Hogwarts.


	3. Secret's Out, My Deer

Where did Harry get his Quidditch prowess from? His dad, of course... oh, and this is the one where everyone finds out about Remus' furry little secret.

Chapter 3

A pillow hit James hard in the face at 5 AM the next morning. He groaned and rolled over.

"JAMES. BLOODY. POTTER. Wake up now or I will hex you into oblivion and then I will kill you slowly!" Sirius yelled, throwing any items he could find at James. His wand hit James in the eye. James covered his head and groped around to turn off the blaring alarm clock. He hit it hard when he found it and the room quieted. Sirius sighed and fell back asleep within seconds. Peter rolled over in his bed and Frank remained unmoved. They could both sleep through an air raid. Remus, James presumed, was still in the hospital wing having his wounds tended to.

The transition hadn't been as bad as they had in the past. Remus didn't writhe in pain for nearly as long as normal, and once his wolf form took over, they roamed the grounds to allow Remus to work out his pent up energy and anger. Sirius and James kept Remus in check, using their large stag and dog bodies to keep him away from the castle, filled with sleeping students, and from hurting himself with the long claws that protruded from his paws. After the full moon began to wane, Remus became weaker and weaker and eventually retreated into the safety of the Shack after Peter had frozen the tree to await his full transition back to human. The other three made their way back to the part of the grounds where they had become their Animagus selves and hurriedly put their clothes back on and began to jog to the castle. After sneaking through the oak front doors, James and Sirius crouched down to Peter's height and the three of them made their way back to Gryffindor tower under the safety of the Invisibility Cloak. Cold, exhausted, and sore, they had collapsed into their beds fully clothed.

And now, at 5 AM, James seriously regretted his decision to hold Quidditch tryouts this morning. What sort of bloody idiot scheduled any athletic endeavor for 7 in the morning?! On a Saturday?! He made a mental note of how stupid he felt and vowed to never wake the team up so early again. After splashing cold water on his face and attempting to flatten his hair with a comb, James dragged his maroon and gold jumper over his head and fastened his Quidditch robes and boots. Carefully extracting his broom from his trunk and stowing his notes and plays inside his robes, he made his way downstairs to the Common Room. His eyes didn't seem to be fully functional nor adjusted to the darkness, so when he reached the bottom of the stairs and ran into something solid, his broom flew out of his hands and he fell face first onto the carpet.

"James? Are you okay? I'm sorry, I didn't mean to trip you. I forgot your eyesight is so bloody terrible." Lily looked down into James' disgruntled face. She appeared to be genuinely concerned, albeit slightly amused. James reluctantly nodded and rolled his eyes. He gave Lily his hand so she could help him back up.

"Dare I ask why you were camped out at the bottom of the boys dorm stairs? Bit creepy, if you're asking me…" James smiled lopsidedly as Lily stamped her foot.

"Because you four disappeared last night! Like you always do. I was hoping to catch you coming back in last night, but I fell asleep in the armchair next to the fire. So then I moved over here… but I suppose you were already back. I just want to know where you guys make off to all the time. You tell us we're all in this together but you're so damn secretive and it makes me crazy. Why can't you just be as honest with me and Mary and Alice and Frank as you are with Sirius and Remus and Peter? Do you not trust us?"

"Lily... " James sighed deeply. He did not have time for this today. "Lily, I do trust you. We do. But this isn't really something I can tell you. It's not up to me."

"Well who is it up to? Who gets to decide what information you withhold from us?!" Lily's red hair fanned out around her face and her green eyes flashed dangerously.

"Lily, I will explain this to you. I will. But not right now. Let me talk to Remus, Sirius, and Peter. This isn't a small decision. I want you to know we trust you. But I can't do this right now. I'm sorry." James laid a hand on her shoulder, but Lily turned away angrily. She stomped back up the stairs to the girls dormitories and James turned, defeated, to the portrait hole. Quidditch tryouts were off to a GREAT start.

After a rushed breakfast of porridge and coffee, James grabbed his Nimbus 1500 and made his way down to the Quidditch pitch. It was a little past 6 now and he wanted some time to fly and clear his mind before potential players showed up. He took Gryffindor's case of Quidditch practice equipment out of the changing room and set the trunk in the middle of the field. He tapped his wand against the arm of his glasses, ensuring that they'd stay on his face. Nobody wanted a repeat of Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff during third year, when James' glasses had fallen off and he missed the goal hoops by a spectacular distance when he attempted to score with the quaffle thanks to his near blindness. He shuddered at the memory as he mounted his broom and fastened his cloak even tighter against the morning chill. He gradually rose into the air, higher and higher until the Quidditch pitch was in full view and the castle looked like a miniature model in the distance. He urged his broom forwards and made a few circles around the pitch before making a nosedive at the smooth surface of the grassy pitch. He waited until he was about to hit the ground before pulling out of the dive in one smooth, upward motion. His toes grazed the ground as he began to accelerate upward. Adrenaline surged through his body and James let out a whoop of exhilaration. Never before had he executed such a well-time Wronski feint. He would definitely be using that move with his Seeker this season. As he hovered above the pitch, heart still beating like a drum in his ears, the hot guilt he felt over Lily's sense of betrayal started to seep back into his stomach. He hated the very idea that Lily thought James didn't trust her. He trusted her with everything he had… but this wasn't his secret to tell. It was Remus' life and future and wellbeing that were on the line if other people knew about his condition. James made a mental vow to broach the subject with the rest of the the Marauders tonight. If the four of them were going to be spending a lot of time with Alice, Frank, Lily, and Mary, it was bound to become obvious that they all disappeared at the same time each month. Practicing and perfecting defensive magic was sure to bring them closer together, but James knew they would never fully know or trust each other with this massive secret lingering in their midst. They had to tell them.

Suddenly, a voice broke through James' incredibly loud stream of consciousness and he started, almost falling off his broom. He regained his balance and looked down, his face burning with embarrassment.

"Potter! Oi! Come down here, won't you?" Kingsley Shacklebolt, a tall, brawny, black sixth year boy was yelling up at James with his hands cupped around his mouth. A small crowd of fellow Gryffindors was making their down the path from the castle and approaching the pitch as well. James steeled himself mentally and made his way back towards the stadium. He landed gingerly in the middle of a circle that was forming, full of Gryffindor Quidditch alums and new faces alike. James grinned and wrung Kingsley's hand enthusiastically until he realized how much stronger the black boy was and yanked his hand away, shaking it in pain.

"Damn, Shacklebolt. Don't break my hand, I need that to throw the quaffle!" Kingsley shrugged apologetically and laughed in his deep baritone.

"Sorry, captain. Just excited to see you!" James grinned at him and looked around the circle. Aside from Kingsley, James saw three more players from last year's team - Frank, who played chaser alongside of James; Lucy Hampton, who was a fourth year and an ace seeker, and Kat Griffin, who completed Gryffindor's trio of chasers, and Kingsley Shacklebolt in front of the goalposts. James knew that the four of them would have to perform well in their tryouts to make it back on the team, but he was confident that they would likely be flying alongside him again this were, however, down two beaters after having lost Gideon and Fabian Prewett the year before. They had been a year above James and were absolute menances with beaters bats and the team would sorely miss them this year. James was on the hunt for two beaters who worked as well and as in sync as the Prewetts had, but he knew that might not be possible. Twins always had some weird connection and those two had worked together like they were silently communicating during the whole game.

James started tryouts by having everyone warm up with a few laps around the pitch and then split them up into positions to have scrimmages to showcase skills. He immediately dismissed a few first years after realizing that they couldn't have been on a broom more than twice in their lives. They walked back to the castle with their heads held low in shame. For the next two hours, James blew his whistle, bellowed orders, and took notes on a clipboard as he hovered between the two scrimmages, watching the players battle for spots on the team. When he finally touched the ground, he knew he had a solid team picked out and that they had a good chance at the cup this year.

"Okay, okay, quiet down, please. Well done, everyone. Really. Great flying. This was a really hard decision, but I've tried to pick the players who are going to fly well together and win us the cup. So… in the position of keeper, we have Kingsley once again." Kingsley smiled as his teammates patted his back. His menacing size was a gift in front of the goal posts, where he blocked the majority of the middle hoop without even trying. "Well done, mate. For chasers, we are sticking with the combination of me, Frank, and Kat." Frank and Kat grinned at James and high fived one another. The other chaser hopefuls rolled their eyes and stomped back towards the castle. "For our two new beaters, we've got Dirk Creswell and Ian O'Leary. Great job with those bats, boys, and we expect you to keep our skulls intact this year." The two stocky fifth years hugged each other and tapped their thick wooden bats together in celebration. "And last, but certainly not least, welcome back to our seeker, Lucy Hampton. You can outfly nearly anyone I've met, Luce, and I know you're going to win us the cup this year." Lucy smiled bashfully. She was a small, slender girl with long strawberry blonde hair who looked incredibly sweet and quiet. Other teams made the mistake of discounting her small stature and quiet nature for weakness and were always thoroughly shocked by the vicious prowess she displayed on a broom. James met with his new team for a few minutes, lining up the next week's practice schedule, and dismissed them to go eat lunch. He stayed behind a few minutes to pack up the supply trunk and secured it to his broom to fly back to the broom cupboard in the changing room. He was barely hovering above the ground as he made his way over the pitch when suddenly, James was yanked from his broom by his boot. He yelped and groped inside his robes for his wand. He jumped up and looked around wildly, only to find a large black dog sitting quietly by the fallen broom and trunk. It wagged its tail happily and showed James its large, pink tongue.

"You're an arse, Sirius. That hurt." James rubbed his shoulder and attempted to reattach the trunk to his broom. Sirius, now back in human form, laughed genially and slung an arm around James' shoulder.

"Good flying, James. Very impressed by your airborne clipboard skills. That'll really win the girls over." He laughed again. "Speaking of girls, mate…. I came down here because Lily Evans looks like she might breathe fire if she opens her mouth and I happen to know there was a brief shouting match between the two of you this morning. I want you to walk into lunch ahead of me so that if she does kill someone, it won't be me. Think of yourself as a sort of human shield."

James sighed. "She confronted me about where we were last night, Sirius. She's pissed. She thinks we don't trust her. We need to tell the others about Moony being a werewolf. If they find out without us telling them, they're never going to forgive us. We need to be a solid group this year, Padfoot. We need to trust each other if we're going to make a difference and join the Order."

Sirius, in a moment that was seriously out of character, was silent. He walked alongside James, scratching absentmindedly at the dark stubble on his cheek. He ran a hand through his long dark hair, took a deep breath in, and turned to James.

"You're right. They need to know. But Remus has to agree first."

* * *

Lunch was an unusually long affair as the four Marauders sat huddled at one end of the table, discussing how best to tell their friends about Remus' secret. Remus had quickly agreed that they needed to know, and that James, Sirius, and Peter also needed to admit to their part in Remus' transitions. James reddened at the thought of turning into a stag in front of Lily. Would it make her feel uncomfortable that the boy who wanted to ask her out was part deer?

They eventually decided on telling the rest of the seventh years that night in the common room. James found Lily that afternoon and slipped her a hastily written note telling them when to arrive. He sidled away before she could ask him any questions and went to shower and clean up before dinner. The four of them spent the afternoon working on Potions essays and Defense homework in their four posters while Frank and Alice sat in the common room with Lily and Mary.

"At least they're not up here snogging in Frank's bed again," muttered Sirius, "I don't think my eyeballs will ever fully recover." James snorted and kept writing his essay. He was secretly very jealous of the relationship Frank and Alice had built. They trusted each other unconditionally and were one another's best friends. They were inseparable and loved each other deeply and could nearly always be found holding hands, or, as Sirius claimed, snogging. James felt a hot sense of desire in the pit of his stomach when he thought of he and Lily having that sort of a relationship one day. He abandoned his potions essay when the thoughts of Lily overpowered what little information he had absorbed in Potions and allowed himself to lay back into his pillows and take a short nap.

After being rudely awoken by Sirius for the second time that day, and in the middle of a very pleasant dream about Lily nonetheless, James grumpily made his way down to dinner with the rest of Gryffindor tower. He ate his steak and kidney pie in silence, mentally working through every possible outcome that Remus' confession could result in. His stomach twisted around itself and he abandoned his pie.

* * *

"So… all this time… you've been going through this alone?" Lily's eyes were sparkling and tears streamed down her freckled cheeks. "Remus… I'm so sorry. Here I was thinking you didn't trust me… but you were trying to keep us and yourself safe. I'm so sorry. You having to go through all that pain all alone…" She shook her head and wiped at her eyes. "But this doesn't explain what these three are always doing on the nights when you're transitioning." She motioned to Sirius, James, and Peter. They all turned a similar shade of purple.

"Erm," James coughed, "funny story there, really. We figured out where he was going during first year. We knew he was lying about his mum being sick and we followed him and saw him go into the willow. We worked the rest out from there. It made all of us sick thinking about Remus doing that alone and hurting himself… so we, um, so we worked something out."

Mary's eyebrows were dangerously close to getting lost in her hairline. Frank's mouth hung slightly open. Alice cocked her head sideways.

"So, are you going to tell us what this miracle solution was? Or make us guess?" Lily snapped, growing impatient to be in the know.

"I think it'll be easier for us to show you rather than try to explain, actually," Sirius added helpfully. He scanned the Common Room for students and when he was sure they were alone, he locked the doorknob on the portrait hole and put a shield charm up at the bottom of the dormitory staircases. "We can't risk being walked in on." Sirius stood up and began to unbutton his shirt. James followed suit. Shirts never seemed to survive transitioning without being ripped apart. They hadn't learned how to remedy that yet. Peter was the exception - his clothes simply swallowed him when he turned into a rat.

"Bloody hell, Sirius, I didn't think that your solution was some sort of twisted porno!" Frank's eyes were wide as saucers and he covered Alice's eyes with his hands.

"Bugger off, mate. You'll see in a second." Sirius took a deep, steadying breath. This was the first time they would show anyone what they'd become. Remus hid his eyes behind his hands and looked as if he was going to be sick.

"As a disclaimer, this was never my intention…" Remus muttered, steeling himself for the moment of reveal.

"Ready?" James asked the other two, locking eyes with them. They all nodded. "One, two, three."

The animal instinct took over again. His bones melted and his head split open and he wasn't sure it would ever end… but then he heard the gasps. He opened his eyes. The room swam into view through a fish eye lens. Everything was black and white. Lily Evan's eyes were open wide and her mouth was hidden behind her hands. Frank had jumped up and had drawn his wand. Mary looked as if she'd seen a ghost… or three of her best friends turn into animals. Alice had fallen over.

"Oh my god... " Lily whispered, "oh. This is not what I was expecting." Alice shook her head silently. A squeak came from underneath Peter's discarded robes. Frank knit his eyebrows together and cautiously peered down at the pile of clothes. He carefully lifted the robes up with the end of his wand and a fat rat ran out from underneath.

"OH. This keeps getting better!" Alice let out a hesitant laugh. "I was wondering where Peter was… with these two taking up the whole room and all."

Sirius barked. James snorted and threw his head. His antler got tangled in the chandelier and he quickly ducked down to break free of it, sending pieces of glass and candle showering down around them.. All four of them looked aghast again. Remus uncovered his face. "Okay, mates, I think they get it. You can go back now."

Peter immediately ran under his robes and emerged a minute later, a mousy haired boy once again. James too changed back into his human self, quickly pulling his shirt over his head. "Reparo," he muttered, quickly repairing the chandelier. Sirius, however, wasn't done with the fun. He nipped playfully at Lily's trainer and bounded around the Common Room on all fours. After licking Mary and Alice's faces, the humongous shaggy dog jumped onto the couch and flipped upside down on its back. Everyone giggled, and a moment later, a shirtless Sirius Black had taken its place. He grinned and hopped up, making his way over to his robes to pull them back on. Everyone sat back down.

"Bloody hell. That's bloody brilliant." Frank's face split into a wide smile and he clapped his hands. "How in the world did you accomplish that?! Advanced transfiguration? Non-verbal spells?" He looked quizzically into their faces.

"Erm, no," Sirius began, slightly ashamed, "we are unregistered animagi." Alice gasped. "We knew we wanted to be able to change with Lupin every month, so we went through the motions to become animagi. It's a long process, as I'm sure you know, and it wasn't easy. We didn't get to choose what we became. We each took the same form as our patronus when we finally transitioned. Nobody knows about this. We did this to keep Remus safe and we need you all to promise to do the same." His dark eyes bored holes into the eyes of Frank, Mary, Alice, and Lily.

"Sirius. We would do anything for Remus." Lily's voice was strong and steady. Remus turned red and hastily wiped at his eyes. "We won't say anything to anyone else. But I cannot and will not promise to not make fun of the fact that you are a stag. A DEER. Of all things to turn into…" She shook her head in disbelief.

"Oi! I didn't get to choose!" James crossed his arms over his chest defensively. "I know being a dog is cooler, but I've got sweet antlers, Lil. They're super useful for like… stabbing stuff." He trailed off lamely, eyes downcast. She laughed.

"Okay, Potter, whatever you say. You're the coolest stag I've seen in awhile. Now that this is over with, can we please get going on this whole defensive magic thing?"

Sirius grinned. "Ready when you are, Lils."


	4. Always Been You

Thanks for making it this far! I've always loved the James & Lily story, and here is where they begin.

Chapter 4

September blew by in a blur of Quidditch practices, late nights attempting to finish mountains of homework, and more challenging classes than any of the Gryffindors had ever experienced. Their professors were clearly pushing them to their limits in an attempt to prepare them for their impending departure from Hogwarts. Weekends were usually spent in the Room of Requirement practicing advanced defensive magic. Remus had stumbled upon the room during his second year when he had been attempting to make his way back to Gryffindor tower after a full moon and avoid crowds of students who would inevitably ask about the long, angry scratch that marred his cheek. He had heard a group of students coming up the corridor and turned to find sanctuary somewhere private and had found himself inside a large chamber, empty and peaceful. Sunlight streamed through tall windows and the walls were covered in bookshelves. A plush couch sat underneath the large windows, inviting someone to come curl up with a book and waste the afternoon.

Remus had been baffled. He had never seen this room before, nor had he ever heard someone mention anything like it. After perusing the books and regaining his composure, he slipped out of the room to finish his journey to the tower. When he had returned to the corridor the following week, the door was gone. Sirius, James, and Peter didn't believe that he had really found a secret room in the castle and they'd forgotten about the whole ordeal until third year, when Sirius had stumbled upon the Room of Requirement when attempting to hide the bookbag he had stolen from Severus Snape. With Snape racing up the stairs behind him, Sirius had wrenched open the first door he could find and discovered a massive room full of hundreds of years worth of hidden treasures. It wasn't until he mentioned this to Remus that they investigated the corridor together and learned of the Room of Requirement.

It had been James' idea to hold their meetings there. They were being challenged in their Defense lessons, but all eight seventh-year Gryffindors agreed that they could use some extra time to practice their magic in a safe place. They had all mastered disarming and stunning spells, protective charms, and jelly-legs jinxes, and now the four Marauders were attempting to teach the other four how to send a Patronus messenger. James had picked up on this particular piece of magic when he had seen a silvery phoenix soar into his parents' kitchen during one summer and speak in the voice of Albus Dumbledore. The Patronus was Dumbledore's most secure form of communication, Fleamont had told James, because it couldn't be intercepted or forged like a letter or owl could be. James had spent the summer before his sixth year practicing patronus charms obsessively until he successfully willed one to deliver Sirius a message. The stag had only bounded over to the next bedroom and told Sirius, in James' voice, that he was a git, but James knew that he had discovered a dead useful form of communication. He had taught Sirius, Remus, and Peter each the charm and they had been using the system over holidays to send messages to one another.

By the middle of October, Frank and Alice had both managed to successfully produce a corporeal patronus charm, but they hadn't yet accomplished speaking through their messengers. James watched as Alice yelled at the silver fox that flitted around the room and Frank's silver hound bounded after it. They evaporated into mist as they circled their owners.

"Don't get upset, Alice, you're so close. Just keep trying." James patted her shoulder and circled around to Lily and Mary. Neither one had achieved a full bodied, corporeal patronus yet. Peter and Remus were attempting to coach Mary and she looked both intimidated and thoroughly annoyed. Lily's face was bright red as she screwed her eyes up in concentration.

" _Expecto patronum!_ " Silver vapor shot from the tip of Lily's wand, but no protector appeared. She flopped down onto the ground. "It's no use, James. I'm lousy at this. I can't do it."

"Come off it, Lily. You are the smartest witch I've ever known and I know you can kick my arse at every spell we've ever learned. You just need a better memory to concentrate on. Think about the happiest you've ever felt."

Lily's eyes welled up. James hadn't realized that asking her to think of happier times would certainly bring memories of her parents back to her. He quickly backtracked.

"Shoot, Lily, I'm sorry. Maybe we've practiced enough for the night." The others noticed Lily weeping and raised their eyebrows at James over Lily's shoulder. He shook his head quickly and motioned for them to leave. He knew she needed some time and space right now. Everyone else awkwardly said their goodbyes and headed back to Gryffindor Tower for some much needed rest.

"I didn't mean to… to make you think of them. I know it's hard on you." James slid to the floor next to Lily. He tentatively placed a hand on her shoulder. She wiped her eyes quickly and turned to him. His stomach leaped.

"It's okay. Really. I don't think I'll ever stop missing them… but it'll get easier to think about them. I think I've been letting my pain from losing them stop me from actually using those memories. I'll get there. Can I try one more time?"

"Of course. Whenever you're ready." James got to his feet, heart beating wildly. Lily had finally realized why she wasn't producing a Patronus… and she had admitted it to HIM. Him! James! They had come to a major turning point and James knew that Lily was close to giving in to him.

She slowly stood up. She swayed for a moment, eyes closed, hands closed tightly around her wand. A single tear slid down her cheek and her knuckles tightened and turned white. She opened her eyes, pointed her wand ahead of her, and opened her mouth.

" _Expecto… patronum_!" Lily's confident voice echoed around the Room of Requirement as she and James stared, open-mouthed, in amazement. A silver doe had erupted from the end of her wand and was gracefully bounding around the room, leaving a silver glow in its wake. James felt like he couldn't breathe. A doe? Lily's patronus was a doe? What did this mean? She didn't know what his was… this was his moment.

" _Expecto patronum_ ," James muttered, not even needing to conjure a happy memory into mind. He was living one.

A glowing stag joined the doe in the middle of the room. She stopped and turned towards the stag. They approached each other slowly and stopped, noses touching. They disappeared into a brilliant silver haze.

The silence was broken only by a ragged intake of breath from Lily. She turned to James.

"A doe… and a stag," she whispered. "I should've known… after all this time."

Her face was drawing ever nearer to James'. He couldn't breathe anymore. He wiped the tear stain from her cheek, her face so close to his that he could've counted each freckle that graced her beautiful nose.

"It's always been you." He closed the gap between them, his body pressed up against hers, his hands cupping her face as he kissed her. Eyes closed and heart racing wildly, he felt her soft lips beneath his and her slender hands close around his waist. The kiss lasted forever… maybe a minute, maybe a year. He couldn't tell.

When they finally broke apart, James smiled down sheepishly at Lily.

"Erm… well… I've wanted to do that for a really long time," he whispered, chortling. Lily stood on tiptoes and pressed a finger to his lips.

"For once in your life, James… Shut. Up.." She pressed her mouth forcefully onto this and they sank into a deeper kiss. James' tongue explored Lily's mouth and her hands slipped under his jumper. He inhaled sharply. Her cold, soft hands ran over his warm skin and felt every detail of his muscled chest. He groaned as his nails grazed over his abs. She pulled her hands out from beneath his shirt and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. James encircled his arms around her back and picked her up. She wrapped both legs around his waist and entwined her fingers in his thick hair as he moved towards the cushions that were stacked in the corner. James, heart beating rapidly and glasses askew, attempted to move the cushions to lay down, but just as he approached the corner, he tripped on a discarded spell book and went barreling towards the ground. He would've flattened her against the cold stone floor had she not had the wit to pull her wand from her sock and perform a cushioning spell before they hit the ground.

James rolled off of Lily, groaning and laughing. He pulled his glasses off and flung them aside, running his hands through his hair.

"I can't believe I just did that. I'm such a bloody clumsy git." He covered his eyes. Lily started to giggle. He turned to her, laying beside him on the floor of the Room of Requirement. She couldn't stop laughing now. Her eyes were welling up with tears and she was squirming next to him, wracked with silent giggles. He couldn't help but laugh along with her. After a few minutes, she finally pushed herself into sitting position and hiccupped.

"Oh my -hiccup- goodness. What just -hiccup- happened?" She looked so beautiful sitting there with her long, tangled hair hanging in her face, her sweater sleeves rolled up to different lengths, and one of her stockings pushed down. "I probably look a mess," she said, noticing James eyeing her hair.

"No. Don't," James pushed her hand away as she attempted to tame her auburn locks. "You've never been more beautiful."

Lily froze, her hands still working to get her hair into a plait. "Well of course you would say that, you git! You just snogged me!" He looked up quickly at her sharp tone, but she was laughing again. She wasn't angry. She just couldn't stop giggling.

"You know, I'm not sure if I should be offended by the fact that I just snogged you and all you can do is laugh. Was I that terrible?"

"Oh god, James. No! That's not why I'm laughing. I just think it's a bit funny that after all these years of you badgering me to go out with you, you nearly kill us when we finally kiss. But no… you were not bad. At all. I rather enjoyed myself if I'm being honest."

They were facing each other again, Lily seated cross-legged on the ground and James' legs splayed apart around her. James smiled again, but not his normal, lopsided, cocky grin. This was a gentle smile that transformed his face and made his eyes appear that there was a bright fire glowing behind them. His glasses were crooked on his face and his hair was sticking up in every which way, but Lily's heart felt like it was melting in her chest. Blood pooled in her stomach and her face burned red. She pushed herself up onto her knees and crawled towards James. She wrapped her hands around his shoulders once again and kissed him. This kiss was even deeper than the last… more urgent. Lily's hands ran through James' hair and down his back and his hands began to snake down to her waist. James laid back onto the cold stone floor, Lily pressed on top of him. The slate pushed uncomfortably against his back, but there was no way in hell that he was about to move. Lily continued to kiss him deeply, her tongue in his mouth and her hands on his chest again. Her body moved against his and he couldn't control himself. She was moving too fast, though…

"Wait, Lil. Wait." James sat up. He took her hands in her own and lowered his head onto her chest. "Jesus, Lily," he sighed, "I'm sorry. We've got to slow down." He looked nervously into her eyes.

Her face was blazing red, but she smiled gently. "No, I'm sorry. I just… couldn't quite bring myself to stop." She blushed even deeper. "I guess, deep down, I've known for a long time. I've wanted to do that for a long time… and now that it finally happened, it feels so natural that I didn't want it to stop."

He groaned again and hung his head. She slid off of his lap and sat facing him, looking puzzled. He struggled to speak. "I didn't want to stop either. Trust me. But I think we need to take this slow." James ran his hands through his wild hair, clearly anxious. "I just… I don't want to… I can't mess this up. I waited so long for this moment, Lily. I won't mess it up. Okay?"

She leaned forward and gently kissed his cheek. When she pulled away, it felt like fire where her lips had been.

"Okay."


	5. Time for Truth

_Her hair was fanned out across the pillow, shining like molten rubies and reflecting the sun that shone through the high windows. She looked serene, peaceful… he almost didn't want to touch her and wake her. Desire coursed through his veins and beat his better judgement to the back of his brain. He stretched out a hand and brushed the flyaway hairs away from her face. Her eyes fluttered open, shining like emeralds set perfectly into that beautiful face. She smiled sleepily and reached up and cupped his large hand to her cheek with her small, elegant hands. She rolled onto her side to face James. Her hands, still holding his, slid away from the cool skin on her cheek and reached for him. Her hands went to his chest and found his heartbeat, steady and strong. She closed her eyes for a moment, just feeling his life beat through his chest. When she opened her eyes, she grinned maliciously and swung herself up to straddle James. Hand still on his chest, she giggled as she felt his pulse begin to race. Slowly, she leaned down, one hand holding her curtain of golden red hair out of her face and the other entangled in his messy hair, and kissed him. She pulled away quickly and moved on to kissing his neck. Her lips found his jawbone and goosebumps erupted all over his body. Her teeth grazed his lips and he could hear her ragged breath in his ear. She slid his jumper up his chest and over his head, flinging it onto the floor. She began to move down his neck, her mouth along his chest and stomach. She neared his navel and her fingers hooked themselves in the belt loops of his jeans. His eyes fluttered and he inhaled sharply, willing his heart to stop beating so wildly. It felt like it was going to beat right out of his chest. He sucked in another breath, feeling as if the oxygen had left the room. Her hands were moving to his belt and his heart continued to race. Surely he would pass out soon…_

"MR. POTTER! Mr. Potter, is this lesson not sufficiently engaging enough to keep you on this side of consciousness? Perhaps an extra scroll of parchment on Gamp's Second Law will entice you to stay awake whilst completing your homework tonight."

McGonagall's sharp, Scottish-accented voice hit James like a brick in the chest. He sat up so fast he was sure he'd given himself whiplash. He hurriedly straightened his glasses and attempted to wipe the drool off of his Transfiguration desk. Peter sniggered. Sirius disappeared under his desk in an attempt to hide his severe case of giggles. His face flushed with embarrassment and he hung his head, attempting to hide the blood creeping into his cheeks.

"Sorry, Professor. Quidditch practice, you know… I'm really tired from our training for our upcoming Ravenclaw match." James attempted his best innocent face and played to McGonagall's weakness - her extreme pride in Gryffindor's quidditch team.

"Surely a Sunday afternoon practice that ended at seven o'clock did not tire you out this much, Potter. I suggest you drink a cup a coffee and buck up. Five points from Gryffindor. And you best not lose if practice is this tiring, Potter." She waved her hand, dismissing the class for the afternoon.

James hastily stowed his books and parchment in his bag and swung out of his desk as Sirius grabbed his shoulder.

"What the bloody hell, mate? Did you just fall asleep in Transfiguration?! And DROOL! What's gotten into you, Prongs?" Sirius hovered behind James, looking torn between wanting to laugh and exhibit genuine concern.

"I'm fine, Sirius. Just tired. Haven't been getting enough sleep lately. McGonagall's right, I'll grab a cup of coffee from the kitchens after dinner so I can get some homework done."

"You're right there, James. You've barely been getting any sleep whatsoever, mate. In fact, we've barely seen you at all during the last week. What's going on with you? We're all getting sick of you lying to us about needing to use the loo and not coming back for three hours." Remus' pale eyes bored into James' as he walked next to James on the way to dinner in the Great Hall.

"I'm fine, really. I'll fill you in when I'm ready, alright? Don't push me," James snapped, tired and irritated. He slumped off to dinner ahead of the other three and sunk on to the long Gryffindor bench. He pulled a platter of chicken legs towards him and attacked a piece with unnecessary vigor.

Truth be told, James really hadn't gotten much sleep lately. And it wasn't the Quidditch team's fault.

Any spare second James found himself with was spent with Lily Evans. They would sneak into his empty dormitory, duck behind tapestries in the corridors, and escape to the Room of Requirement when they managed to extricate themselves from their friends. They had agreed that they wouldn't tell anyone about their relationship until they were sure that they knew what they were getting into.

They spent long hours hidden away, talking about all of the things they'd missed during the years that they had constantly been at war with one another. Lily told James of the pain she'd felt in losing her parents, of her favorite memories with them, of her strained relationship with her sister, and of her fear of what would happen after leaving Hogwarts. James listened, mostly, contributing a few words to the conversations every now and again, but mostly just holding Lily's hand, memorizing the lines that crossed her palms and the way her eyes crinkled when she smiled. She would talk for hours and suddenly trail off, looking at James as though she'd just seen him for the first time. Her freckled cheeks would turn red and her green eyes would glitter as she leaned in to kiss him. Sometimes, they just lay next to each other, content to simply exist in the same dimension.

As the days slipped by, however, their friends became increasingly suspicious. Sirius began following James whenever he said he needed the loo, which meant that James actually had to go to the bathroom and pretend to be confused when Sirius accused him of trying to sneak off. Mary and Alice began to notice that Lily wasn't at her normal studying spot in the library when she told them she had essays to complete. They began taking on an air of annoyingly superior knowingness when Lily left for the library, their eyebrows high and mouths pursed.

"They know something," Lily whispered, breathlessly, as she attempted to stand up straight. They were behind the tapestry of Wendolyn the Weird on the third floor, tangled up in each other's arms. "Shhh… they don't know a thing," James hissed into Lily's ear, grabbing her around the waist and kissing her cheek. Lily giggled loudly and attempted to free herself, but James' arms were far stronger than her own. He grinned broadly at her struggle and kissed her deeply. She managed to pull herself away once more, smiling, and tapped his nose. "James Potter," she chided, "you cannot force a woman to kiss you by pinning her arms to her side." James feigned shock and disapproval. "Me?" He asked, "Me?! Force you to kiss me? That was all you, woman." They both smiled and Lily wrapped her arms around James' waist, leaning her head into his chest. His arms encircled her shoulders and his chin came to rest on top of her auburn hair. She listened to his heart beat steadily in his chest for a few minutes before speaking. "But seriously, James. We have to tell them." James sighed in agreement, his breath ruffling Lily's hair as it left him.

Luckily, the chance to tell their friends of their relationship arose sooner than they expected. And sooner than they were prepared for, in all honesty. Late that evening, as they made their way out from behind the tapestry on the third floor, the rest of the seventh year Gryffindors were sitting together in the empty common room. Sirius had ensured that the room would be empty by setting of a dungbomb earlier in the evening. "It still stinks in here," complained Mary. Sirius rolled his eyes and leaned forward on to this knees. "Alright, folks," he began, looking at the faces surrounding him. "We all know why we are here. Something is going on with Prongs and Evans." Everyone nodded. Sirius continued. "Either they have joined some sort of illegal crime ring or James has put Lily under the Imperius curse and is forcing her to go out with him, because we all know that she wouldn't do that willingly." Heads nodded once again. "Remus has been using the map to keep an eye on things around the castle, and they've been spotted together too many times to be normal." Alice interrupted at this point. "What bloody map are you four always going on about?" She glared at the three Marauders. Sirius threw his hands up in exacerbation. "ALICE! Priorities!" He shouted, growing impatient. "I'll explain later. Back to the main topic. Prongs and Evans. Where the hell are they going together… and why the hell are they together in the first place?"

"We can explain that," came a voice from the portrait hole. James was ducking through the portrait hole behind Lily, who was straightening her robes and looking at James. Sirius stood up and began to speak, but James cut him off. "Please, mate, let me talk." James looked imploringly at Sirius, who raised his eyebrows and put his hands up in mock surrender as he collapsed onto the couch next to Mary. Six sets of eyes bored into James and Lily as they stood, awkwardly, looking at their friends. Suddenly, James lunged out and grabbed Lily's hand. He grinned lopsidedly and held it up, like he'd just won some sort of bizarre boxing match. Lily wrenched her hand free and smacked James with it. Remus yelled. Peter fell off the couch. Mary and Alice gasped. Sirius laughed.

"No way. No bloody way, Prongs. There is NO WAY that you finally snogged Evans and didn't come running to tell us about it. We know you. You would be skipping and floating off the ground if she'd finally given you a second glance. You'd-" he was abruptly cut off by Mary and Alice clapping hands over his mouth at the same time. "Shut up, Sirius," hissed Mary dangerously, "or I will shut you up myself." Sirius' eyes bulged and he nodded at Mary, having witnessed one of her Tongue Tying Curses firsthand. "Okay," Mary said, very matter-of-factly, "explain."

"Well… erm… me and Evans… errr, I mean Lily and I, kind of have been…"

"We're together." Lily cut James off and he looked at her with gratitude. "Since about a week ago. In the Room of Requirement. When everyone left, James stayed behind with me. He helped me figure out why I couldn't cast a Patronus, and when I finally did… it's a doe. My Patronus is a doe."

Remus' face softened into a smile. Mary and Alice were holding hands and had tears glittering in their eyes. Frank gave James a thumbs up. Peter was still on the ground. Sirius, however, still looked doubtful.

"Oh c'mon, mate. You're telling me that after SIX years, you managed to seduce her in one night with a Patronus charm? How did you make hers look like a doe? You've got to be kidding. You two are pulling some elaborate prank on us. Not gonna work on me," said Sirius, tapping his head with his wand, "this is a steel trap. Won't get anything by me. No, no." He looked at James and Lily and raised his eyebrows, as if daring them to prove him wrong.

"Sorry, Sirius, you're going to have to take the L on this one," said Lily, moving closer to James, "because I have been proven wrong. James is no longer my mortal enemy." She reached up and grabbed his face in her hands, kissing him quickly, but passionately. The girls squealed, Sirius gagged, Remus and Frank laughed out loud, and Peter remained on the floor.

"Fine. So, Prongs," Sirius began, grinning maliciously, "how far has she let you get?" He was silenced by Lily's trainer hitting him square in the forehead.

With the initial shock of James and Lily being together behind them, the seventh year Gryffindors said goodnight and retreated to their dormitories. Frank kissed Alice's cheek before heading to bed, and James realized that he could now follow suit. He pecked Lily and whispered "see you in the morning," before bounding up the stairs to his four poster, feeling as if he was floating on air. He pulled his robes over his head, kicked his trainers into his trunk, and flopped back onto his bed, grinning widely at the ceiling.

"Close your mouth, mate," Sirius said thickly, his mouth full of toothpaste, "you look like a bloody idiot." James flipped Sirius off. "I'm really happy for you, Potter," said Frank, clapping James on the back, "really. You seem really great together. Just don't hurt Lily, or I think Alice will kill you herself." James laughed weakly. He had no doubt that Alice could finish him off and make it look like an accident.

After taking a shower, brushing his teeth, and shaving what little stubble grew on his face, James climbed into his bed, which was pushed against the wall in the circular room between Sirius and Remus' beds. He laid with his head on the pillow, glasses still on, thinking about the last week with Lily. It had been perfect. And now his best mates knew, and he could about life at Hogwarts with everyone knowing he and Evans were dating.

"James?" Sirius' voice crept through the dark room. "Yeah?" James responded, not sure what Sirius needed. "Are you sure about this? After everything that's gone on? And everything that's gonna happen after we leave?" James thought about this for a moment. Sirius rarely asked hard questions. He preferred to keep conversation light and sarcastic. This was very out of character for him, but James knew this was important for Sirius to know. James was the only family Sirius had. After he'd fallen out with his parents and brother, his name had been singed off his own family tree and he'd been kicked out. He found refuge under the Potter's roof and home within it's walls.

"Yeah, mate. I'm sure of it. Things feel… so right with Lily. Like we were always supposed to end up here, together. It doesn't feel like getting to know her. It feels like… we always knew each other this way and we had just forgotten. I know this sounds crazy, Padfoot, but I love her. I think, really, I always have." James surprised even himself with these words.

Silence followed. James could hear Sirius breathing out through his nose before he finally spoke. "Okay."


End file.
